I Decided to Home School, Now What?

As salamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh, One school year is ending and another will soon be beginning. For many Muslim sisters, this means taking on the important task of home schooling their children. For a sister who has never home schooled, the task can be daunting. As a former public school teacher and a home school instructor, I would like to offer some advice and some curriculum guidelines. First, let me so that educating your children is one of your most important obligations. It goes beyond helping your child survive in the dunya. It also helps children grow up to be better Muslims. A well educated boy becomes a man who can adequately support his family and enable his wife to stay home with the children. A well educated girl becomes a woman who can educate her own children adequately. A good education allows all children to more easily learn their deen. How many people do you know who are misguided because they blindly follow those who are upon innovation or disbelief? Many do so because they are not educated enough to seek their own evidences and understand what they read. A good education can help one become a good Muslim. That being said, there is more than one way to educate your child. You can send your child to the local public school. Here the education is free but often inadequate and you have little control over what you child learns or the environment he learns it in. Private Islamic schools are another option. While many provide a quality education, you must be sure that the Islamic education they provide is based upon the Salafi minhaj. Some Islamic schools teach children in a coed environment or teach music, etc. Then we come to the home school options. You can send your child to a group home school program, use an online program, hire a private instructor, or create your own curriculum and teach your child yourself. There are advantages and disadvantages to each of these options. For those who want to create your own curriculum and teach your child yourself, I have some advice and curriculum guidelines. The advice is based upon my own experiences. The guidelines are general guidelines for what a child should be learning on a grade by grade basis for Pre-K through 5th grade. Insha Allah, I will have the curriculum guidelines for 6th -12th grades soon. Please remember that the curriculum guidelines are general. You may need to alter them somewhat to meet your local school district requirements. General Advice 1. Ask Allah for guidance and patience every day. 2. Be informed. Know your local Board of Education and your State Board of Education guidelines. Different school districts have different rules. Some allow anyone to home school their child while others require a certified teacher to be
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involved. Some require you to submit an outline of course curriculum while others dont. Some require home-schooled children to take standardized tests and others dont. 3. Keep detailed records of EVERYTHING. Keep a list of all subjects learned and the grades received. Create an actual report card/transcript. Some states require them. Almost all colleges require them. In the event it becomes necessary for your child to attend public/private school, the school will require one. Many websites offer how-tos on creating report cards/transcripts or offer free downloadable forms. Keep records of attendance and hours spent on each subject. Many school districts require a minimum number of educational hours even for homeschoolers. 4. Devise a fair grading system. You cant just use stars and nice comments. You need to devise an actual grading system. Percentage-based systems are best for high school because colleges look at GPAs. 5. Be objective. We all love our children and want them to get good grades. We must be objective when grading their work. If its D quality work, give it a D. We must not help them when they are taking tests. 6. Know your limitations. Not everyone is able to teach their children at home. If you have lots of children at different grade levels, home schooling can be a challenge. Get some help. Find another home schooling parent and co-teach. If there are subjects, you are not so good at; you may want to find someone else to teach those subjects. This is especially true for high school. What we learned in high school 20 years ago is not what they learn today. 7. Share Resources. Join a Muslim home school group. If there isnt one, consider establishing one. There are many benefits to these groups. First, parents can share ideas, activities and worksheets. Second, your children need to be around other children. This is important to their learning social and communication skills. Third, local groups can often get group rates if they do group field trips. 8. Use all available resources. Many websites offer free worksheets, theme units, etc. Grab things now while they are free. Even if you dont need them now, they might not be free or available later on. 9. Use the barter system. Many of us are short on cash. This may prevent you from hiring someone to teach your child. However, maybe that sister would be willing to teach your child in exchange for some free babysitting, cooking, cleaning, or laundry services. 10. Make sure your child does community service activities. Have them work in a food pantry or soup kitchen. Have them mow yards for the elderly or disabled. Have them tutor younger children. This is important for the high school children. Colleges look for these activities when considering admission applications.

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11. Scrutinize online programs carefully. Check with other sisters to see which programs they are using. Check with the Better Business Organization regarding consumer complaints. Some programs (like K-12) are free depending on where you live. Others are very expensive. Some offer payment plans, others dont. Many programs are Christian based. Some high school programs provide an actual diploma while others do not. 12. Schedule set times to have home school. Do your best to always be schooling during these times. Create lessons plans for what you plan on teaching. You can be more flexible with these. Your child may accomplish the task more quickly than planned or may need to spend more time on a subject. 13. Do hands on activities and field trips. These activities increase your childs understanding of various concepts, stimulate the mind and prevent boredom. 14. Teach a foreign language. Many of our children are already learning Arabic. Many local school districts require it for graduation and many colleges require it for college admissions. You may also consider an online language course or community courses are taught at many local colleges.

Curriculum Guidelines Please note: These are just guidelines. It is not an all inclusive list of what you should teach your child. You will also need to verify that you are meeting your local school districts curriculum requirements. Another note: Many Muslims struggle with teaching social studies and science. Many topics the child must learn go against what we as Muslims know to be true (For example, learning about Hinduism in India). However, many districts make the topics mandatory. Just teach your child the bare what is mandatory and then explain the truth to them. Pre-K BASICS: Letter (and their sounds), numbers, shapes, and colors. LANGUAGE ARTS: Reading from left to right (in English), exposure to new vocabulary, looking for rhyming words or words that start with the same letter or sound. When you read, point to each word as you read (they will begin to associate the written word with the spoken word). Read to your child EVERY day. Ask them questions about what you read. They should be able to answer basic questions. Teach them how to hold a pencil correctly. Teach them the correct way to write letters (upper and lower case) and numbers. Write their names. Practice, practice, practice. Most of it wont be legible, but this is still a learning experience.
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MATH: Recognize and write numbers. Count (not just out loud, but actually count how many of something, ex. Pennies). Recognize shapes. Recognize size differences (which is bigger, longer, etc., whose hand is bigger or smaller, etc.) SCIENCE: Nature and animals. Simple things can be done such as planting seeds, watching ice melt, reading about animals and nature. Basic hygiene (washing hands, covering mouth when coughing, etc.). SOCIAL STUDIES: Beginning social skills. Manners, taking turns, problem resolution, and how to verbalize emotions (happy, sad, angry, etc.). Kindergarten LANGUAGE ARTS: Read to your child EVERY day. Recognize that letters go together to make words. Sound out words. Work to increase vocabulary. Begin to read aloud to you. Start with books with only one or two words per page then build up as child progresses. Write all the letters and numbers without copying. Spell small words. Keep a writing journal. This writing may look unrecognizable. Once they are done writing, have them read it to you. Write down what they tell you. MATH: Addition and Subtraction (they will probably need counting materials to figure it out). Basic time (clock and calendar). SCIENCE: Plants, animals, weather and seasons. Sort land animals from water animals. Pick out what clothes they would wear in the rain, cold, sun, etc. Continue with basic hygiene. SOCIAL STUDIES: Continue developing social skills and manners. Work on interacting with other children. If possible, join a Muslim play group. If there isnt one, consider starting one. Children need to learn how to act around other children in a play environment. First Grade LANGUAGE ARTS: Your child should be reading aloud EVERY day. Develop word recognition and reading skills. Read simple books without much help. You should be reading to your child EVERY day. Reading comprehension (Can they tell you basics about what was read?) Expose child to fiction and non-fiction books. Choose books that can relate to those things they are learning in science and social studies. Develop handwriting skills. Focus on forming the letters correctly. Weekly spelling tests should begin. Continue with journals. Give your child a topic and have him/her write about it. Do the words look like words? Spelling may not be correct but can you figure out what they were trying to write (is it at least spelled like it sounds?). Introduce punctuation.

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MATH: Continue with basic addition and subtraction (will most likely still need counting materials). Work on actually telling time. Introduce money. Work on shapes (2 and 3 dimensional). Recognize patterns. Count by 2s, 5s and 10s. SCIENCE: The Earth (land, water, and air), weather, the human body, plants and animals. SOCIAL STUDIES: Learn about past, present and future. You dont have to teach them actual history yet. How yesterdays actions affect today, and todays actions affect tomorrow, etc. Teach them about the local community (parks, libraries, etc.) Continue with social skills. Begin teaching more responsibility (this is a great time to introduce simple chores). They should be capable of following simple directions or rules. They should learn about consequences. Second Grade LANGUAGE ARTS: Children should be able to read and write by now. For reading, focus on word recognition (they should be able to read without sounding out the words). Your child should be reading aloud and independently EVERY day. Introduce chapter books. Teach them to write sentences. Increase vocabulary and begin to focus more on correct spelling and punctuation. Introduce the dictionary. Introduce cursive writing (upper and lower case). Print handwriting should be neat and legible. Continue journal writing (alternate print and cursive handwriting). MATH: Addition and subtraction of 2 and 3 digit numbers (leave off the counting materials). Grouping and ordering. Continue with skip counting (3s 4s etc.). Introduce basic multiplication and division of 1 and 2 digit whole numbers. They should learn the times tables up to the 5s. Learn equal, less than and greater than. SCIENCE: Environments and climates. Natural resources and their uses. Life cycles of plants and animals. Start a garden (make a small indoor garden grow herbs for cooking, etc). SOCIAL STUDIES: Continue with social skills. Focus on conflict resolution and problem solving. Introduce the continents and oceans. Teach differences amongst regions (cold climate vs. warm climate, foods, housing, transportation, languages) Third Grade LANGUAGE ARTS: Increase independent reading. Quiz them for reading comprehension. Introduce story plots, setting and characters. Fiction vs. non-fiction. Introduce metaphors, similes, etc. Basics of writing papers (choosing topic, sources of information, drafts, and final copies.) Correct grammar and punctuation. Introduce the thesaurus and encyclopedia. Write short answers in complete sentences with minimal
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spelling, grammatical or punctuation errors. Introduce letter (thank you business, friendly, etc.) writing. Basic research skills (include library skills). Book reports and Factual Reports. Continue journal writing. Focus more on cursive writing. Continue with spelling tests. MATH: Addition and subtraction (up to 4 digit numbers). Multiplication and division (include 2 and 3 digit numbers) of whole numbers. Know multiplication tables up to 12x12. Number places (ones, tens, hundreds, tenths, hundredths, etc.) Introduce fractions and decimals and increase money skills. Add and subtract simple decimals and fractions as well as money. Simplify fractions (5/10=1/2 or 6/9=2/3). Introduce units of measurements (English and metric system) and what they are used for (length, volume, weight, temperature, time, etc.) Convert small measurements (3 ft =1 yd, 16 oz=1 lb or 2 pt=1 qt). Tell time, read a ruler, figure out the temperature, use a weight scale, etc. Be able to compare/contrast various polygons. Area and perimeter of the various shapes. SCIENCE: Relationships between the sun, Earth and moon (day vs. night and the seasons). Weather systems. Living systems including the food chain. Different land masses (mountains, hills, plains, etc) and water systems (freshwater vs. saltwater, oceans, lakes, etc). Different states of matter (solids, liquids and gases). Introduce the periodic table. Different types of energy (solar, mechanical, light, heat, etc.). SOCIAL STUDIES: Compare/contrast living conditions in past vs. present. Learn basic map skills (scale, symbols, etc.). Introduce the atlas. Begin basic geography and study basic history of those areas. Study changes in transportation and communication over time. Children should have a grasp on the concept of having consequences for their actions. Fourth Grade LANGUAGE ARTS: Books and more books. Lots of independent reading. Develop vocabulary skills (determine meanings from root words, prefixes, suffixes and context clues, etc.). Continue spelling tests based on math, science and social studies. Emphasize research skills. Teach opinions vs. facts. Child should be able to research topics and write reports. Reports should have proper structure, spelling, punctuation and grammar. Should be written in a logical order. They should be able to provide evidence for what they write. Begin working on essay questions. Learn to write dialogue. Continue journal writing with focus on technical skills of writing. MATH: Addition and subtraction of very large numbers. Multiplication and division of 34 digit whole numbers. Introduce remainders in division. Multiply and divide decimals. Multiply and divide fractions. Introduce lowest common denominators. Continue
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simplifying fractions. Percentages. Should learn conversions between fractions, decimals and percentages. Convert different units of measurements (hours to seconds, miles to kilograms, Celsius to Fahrenheit). Graphs, charts, tallies, etc. SCIENCE: Water cycle (precipitation, condensation, etc.), atmosphere and interactions between living things and their environment. Continue to study forms of matter and energy. Solar system. Introduce observation and other data gathering skills. Basic experimentation (you and child doing together). Many websites offer information for a variety of easy, inexpensive experiments that can be done at home. SOCIAL STUDIES: State history (when became a state, basic government, major historical events), US states and their capitals. Compare/contrast changes in population and regions over time. How has technology changed the way people live? Fifth Grade LANGUAGE ARTS: Book, books and more books. Reading larger chapter books. Comparing/contrasting book characters, places, and settings. Summarize stories. Write clear logical papers (fiction and non-fiction.) Continue journal writings with a focus on technical aspects and different writing styles. Reports should have footnotes and bibliographies. Spelling and reports can be related to math, science and social studies. MATH: Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division (with and without remainders) of very large numbers. Convert complex fractions to decimals and percentages. Understand number powers. Solve real world problems involving money, time and measurements. SCIENCE: Make observations and gather data. Learn processes such as photosynthesis, digestion, etc. Effects of people on the earth/environment. Pollution, recycling, conservation and preservation. Individual experimentation (under your supervision, of course). SOCIAL STUDIES: People and events in American History. Advanced studies of world cultures.

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